Waterloo Luxury Washrooms

For this month’s Spotlight Editorial we chatted with Mr. Jamie Conner, owner of Waterloo Mobile Washrooms, located in Tampa, Florida. Waterloo is presently the only company, based in Tampa Bay, which combines totally luxury with environmentally-friendly products and services; truly, portable Washroom Units for the 21st Century.

Q. Can you tell me a little bit about your educational and work background? What were you doing before you went into business for yourself in the liquid waste industry?
I graduated from Florida State University with a double major in finance and real estate. This was during the economic slump and the real estate industry was taking a big hit. I worked as a commercial insurance broker for a few years after college. More recently, I was an account executive for a publicly traded IT staffing and project solutions firm. I always wanted to go into business for myself. During this time I attended a large outdoor wedding reception event that had a luxury mobile restroom. Further inquiry led me to find out that the bride and groom had to order the luxury units all the way from across the State because there was no company at that time offering luxury mobile portable washrooms in the Tampa Bay area. I sort of had a “Eureka moment!” My strong hunch was verified when, after doing some preliminary market research, I found out that there was no one in the Tampa Bay area offering exclusively luxury portable restrooms. I saw an immediate unfulfilled but strong need and also a great business opportunity. Waterloo Luxury Washrooms was officially launched on August 1, 2015.

Q. Tell us a little bit about the organizational structure at Waterloo Luxury Washrooms. Who works for the company? What are their titles, duties, and obligations?
Given that we just started out, our employee base is for now pretty limited. My wife Kristen, a certified public accountant (CPA) runs everything that is needed in the office, including all of the administrative work, as well as doing all of the bookkeeping and necessary accounting work. I mainly work in the field, but I am also available in the office if any client has a question or concern. I am responsible for all of the sales and marketing efforts that lead to booking customers. My role is to spend all of my time in front of potential clients, developing relationships, and uncovering new opportunities. We presently have a part-time delivery technician, a cleaning crew, and a group of part-time, what I like to call “Loopers.” The Loopers are actually on-site Waterloo Washroom representatives that “loop” inside and outside of the ‘Loo’ to ensure cleanliness for your guests. The Looper is not a bathroom attendant. We do not want our clients’ guests to feel awkward like being confronted with an array of toiletry products or thinking that they have to tip anyone. Since the business is growing I plan on hiring new employees, including a field manager, who would attend to all of the portable unit trailers we have set up, making sure quality control and assurance is maximized at every site.

Q. What is your business model? How have you positioned your business?
After conducting market research in the Tampa Bay area, I realized Waterloo could be the supplier of high-end luxury washrooms for any event, large or small. We strive to be the go-to luxury portable washroom company in Central Florida. Although I have received contract offers that are outside of our 50-60 square mile service area, I do not take them so we can concentrate on providing the best service available in our area. My approach to new clients is based on a consultative model. I meet personally with every new client in order to get an exact understanding of their needs and then I inform the client of how Waterloo can meet those exact needs.

Q. Tell us a little about the day-to-day operations. What should a client expect when they decide on choosing Waterloo for their event?
I first meet personally with the client, and then scope out the environment and areas where the event will be held in order to determine the best location for our portable units. Once we confirm the client’s reservation, we are in constant contact with them. Through various channels of correspondence we can inform the client when the trailer with the portable units will arrive, and what it takes for us to set up the trailer. Ideally, an operator would arrive the day before the event and begin to set everything up, including the electrical hookups that are required to run the units. We inform the client of everything that is included in the reservation, which includes bathroom tissue, hand towels, soap, trash cans, and trash bags, among other products. Everything will be set up well before the beginning of the event. During the event, a “Looper” will be available to address any issues a client may have. We tell every client their only responsibility is to show us where they would like the trailer parked. Everything else will be handled in a very seamless fashion.

Q. Tell us about the luxury portables and the trailers that are used to bring the portables to the designated areas of an event.
The choice of which units to use for Waterloo was another aspect of the business that we researched. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to use and offer only the finest portables available. There are many fine manufacturers of high-end luxury portable units, but, in the end, we chose JAG Mobile Solutions. Presently we own and operate four trailers. Our near future projections tell us that we will be investing in more during the spring of 2016, to bring the total number of trailers to eight, adding larger trailers along with a few small ones. The four trailers we now use include one 12ft-long trailer, two 15ft-long trailers, and one18ft-long trailer. Our 12-ft long JAG Mobile Solutions trailer is equipped to provide four separate stalls. Each stall has its own door for privacy, and each stall is unisex, meaning both men and women can use them. The 12-footers have a functional capacity of 1,100 uses before they reach full capacity. That is a lot of flushes! Each of the four separate stalls comes with a toilet, sink with hot running water, and a vanity with a mirror. The on-board freshwater capacity is 200 gallons, with a waste tank capacity of close to 500 gallons. The flush function for both the toilets as well as the sinks is timed-release automatic, which cuts down on clients having to touch any of the equipment. This increases safety and maintains proper sanitation.
Each of our two 15-foot trailers is equipped to provide six totally separate stalls. The 15-footers are not unisex. Three of the stalls are designated for men and three are designated for women. The three stalls for women come with a toilet, and an extra-large sink and vanity. The men’s stalls each have a toilet, a urinal, and a sink and a vanity. These 15-footers have a total use capacity of 1,500 flushes. The units are equipped with a 600 gallon waste water capacity and 200 gallons of fresh water for the sinks.
Finally, is our 18-ft long trailer that comes with eight stalls, four designated for woman and four designated for men. The total use capacity of these 18-footers is 1,800 uses. The tanks include 725 gallons of waste water and 200 gallons of fresh water.

Q. What are the different products that you use with your portable units?
We are strong proponents of only using all-natural, non-harmful, environmentally-friendly products. First of all, all of the paper products we use are made from recycled materials. We do not use harsh chemicals. The products we use are bio-degradable and do not contain any toxins. We hire a pumping company to remove the waste generated during an event. In Florida it gets hot and so a considerable amount of electricity is used running air-conditioning for the units. We believe in renewable energy sources and keep a constant eye on technological advances that will allow us to operate the trailers self-sufficiently. Solar options are currently available but not powerful enough yet to run the air conditioning needed in Florida. Our goal is to learn as much as we can about renewable energy sources and be at the cutting-edge of implementing such state-of-the-art technologies in the equipment we use on a daily basis.

Q. How did you arrive at creating a unique image or identity for your company?
After strategizing before opening our business, we knew we wanted to pursue ways to offer portable washroom services that were second to none. The first tactic was to choose only top-of-the-line highest-end portable units, and only offering the finest in convenience and comfort. Our second tactic was to strongly keep an eye on and pursue vigorously the latest, state-of-the-art technology being developed in the portable toilet and washroom industry. Coupled with this was the strategy to only use eco-friendly, environmentally-safe, bio-degradable, and recycled products for all of our units. Our goal was really to take it to the next level of luxury portable washrooms and restrooms and, thankfully, we are slowly but surely achieving our goal to be recognized as a leader in the portable washrooms and toilet business in the state of Florida.

Q: You also feel it is important to give back to the local community. Tell us how you go about giving back to the local community.
Kristen and I are both firm believers in the overall positive impact giving back to the community becomes—it’s like a win -win situation for everybody involved. That is why we are fully committed to donating 10% of Waterloo’s revenue to local charities in the Tampa Bay area. In fact you can nominate a charity on our website. For more information on Waterloo Luxury Restrooms, visit their website at: www.waterloowashrooms.com.